What's Required Each public agency must conduct a full and individual initial evaluation (FIIE) before providing special education and related services to a child with a disability (34 CFR 300.301(a)). Subsequently, an ARD Committee determines if the child needs special education and/or related services (34 CFR 300.8(a)(1)).For information regarding the disability conditions that the Texas Education Agency (TEA) recognizes, see Disability Terms.
Special education means specially designed instruction, at no cost to the parents, to meet the unique needs of a child with a disability. Specially designed instruction means adapting, as appropriate to the needs of an eligible child under this part, the content, methodology, or delivery of instruction— to address the unique needs of the child that result from the child’s disability; and to ensure access of the child to the general curriculum, so that the child can meet the educational standards within the jurisdiction of the public agency that apply to all children (34 CFR 300.39(a)). . Each public agency must ensure that to the maximum extent appropriate, children with disabilities, including children in public or private institutions or other care facilities, are educated with children who are nondisabled; and special classes, separate schooling, or other removal of children with disabilities from the regular educational environment occurs only if the nature or severity of the disability is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be achieved satisfactorily (34 CFR 300.114(a)).
Each public agency must ensure that a continuum of alternative placements is available to meet the needs of children with disabilities for special education and related services. The continuum must include instruction in regular classes, special classes, special schools, home instruction, and instruction in hospitals and institutions; and make provision for supplementary services (such as resource room or itinerant instruction) to be provided in conjunction with regular class placement (34 CFR 300.115(b)).
Children Transitioning from Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) Agencies The Office of Special Education Services has an Intake Center to evaluate children prior to the age of three years who are transitioning from Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) agencies. The following steps are followed:
For a child identified and served by ECI agency:
Intake schedules meeting with agency (120-day)
Transition meeting is held with parent.
If the parent and child are scheduled for another meeting at the school district, the child will be screened for developmental delays and depending on the results:
Parent may be given a Notice of Refusal, or
The child will be tested at that time in the area(s) of the delay(s)
If the child is tested, a case manager is assigned ( Evaluation Specialist and/or Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP). The evaluation team and/or the SLP completes the evaluation. The evaluation may include:
A comprehensive measure of intelligence,
A measure of adaptive behavior,
Age appropriate developmental/academic evaluation,
A speech/language evaluation, and if documented in the Case Review Summary,
A psychological evaluation if documented in the Case Review Summary,
An assistive technology/augmentative communication assessment if documented in by the screener performed by a speech pathologist with training in this area,
A Nurse Consultant will collect medical information and secure medical disability forms, as needed.
The case manager and the assessment team write an FIIE report which includes the Documentation of Disability.
The program specialist secures placement and forwards the request to the appropriate campus
The assigned special education teacher schedules the initial ARD/IEP committee within 30 days of the FIIE date and prior to the child's third birthday
Campus personnel are responsible for:
Developing the Easy IEP forms and the Individualized Educational Program (IEP) based on recommendations in the FIIE report,
Attending the ARD/IEP meeting at the receiving school to review the results of the FIIE report and documentation of disability
Verifying the demographic data for the child, and
Submitting a request for transportation if appropriate.
Eligibility Preschool age children may be eligible for special education and related services under the following categories
auditory impairment
autism
deaf-blind
emotional disturbance
intellectual disability
multiple impairment
noncategorical
orthopedic impairment
other health impairment
speech impairment
traumatic brain injury
visual impairment
NCEC cannot be used when a child meets the criteria for Multiple Impairment.
NCEC cannot be used when a tertiary disability is confirmed such as VI, AI, or a health condition. The only exception is when the tertiary label is SI. For example, NCEC can be used for NCEC/AU/SI. It cannot be used for NCEC/ID/VI. This child should be VI/ID.
Process for Involving Nurse Consultant As is noted on the Intake form, Nurse Consultants are to only be included on the evaluation team when the child is being considered for AI, VI, or is medically fragile. For all other children, the case manager (SLP for speech only and evaluation specialist for all others) is able to conduct observations related to the child’s vision/hearing status during performance of evaluation and assessment procedures. Additionally, parent report can assist team members in determining what vision/hearing -related behaviors are or are not typically observed with the child.
The level of hearing and vision testing required is only for identifying those children who need further diagnostic evaluation by a specialist and not for the purpose of diagnosing specific hearing and/or vision conditions.
When attending ECI transition meetings and considering who needs to be on the evaluation team, please include the nurse consultant only when the child is being considered for AI, VI, or is medically fragile.
If the speech therapist suspects that a child needs additional assessment after completing the speech/language evaluation, a team comprised of the evaluation specialist, a general education teacher, a special education teacher and the speech therapist will review the existing data.. The team must meet within 10 days of the date of the speech/language evaluation to make a determination regarding completion of additional testing. If it is determined that additional testing is needed, the testing will be completed prior to the initial ARD/IEP meeting.
Non-enrolled Children (ages 3-5) The Office of Special Education Services evaluates children who are not enrolled in school and are suspected of having a disability. The following steps are followed:
Parents must contact their neighborhood school in HISD for an evaluation.
The school will convene an IAT to consider the request.
The IAT coordinator will ask the parent to formally consent to the evaluation or the IAT may formally issue a decision not to test in a prompt, timely manner.
The decision to not evaluate a student will be communicated in person.
Continuum of Services The following continuum of special education services is available for preschool children with disabilities:
Speech Therapy Services are provided by a licensed Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) at the child’s home school;
Itinerant Teacher Services are provided by a certified special education teacher for children attending community sites such as a private preschool, daycare or Head Start. The itinerant special education teacher provides special education services at the community sites. The ARD/IEP Committee determines the type and amount of time for provision of services;
Co-Teacher Services are provided when the special education teacher works collaboratively with the Pre-K or Kindergarten teacher to provide instruction in the general education setting;
Support Facilitation Services are provided when a special education teacher assistant provides instructional support services for preschoolers with disabilities in the general education pre-kindergarten or kindergarten classes; and
Self-Contained Services are provided by a special education teacher and teacher assistant in a special education class.
It is important to note that when a Preschoolers Achieving Learning Skills (PALS) placement is considered by the ARD committee, the default placement decision is a full-day. The parent may opt for lesser time, but minimum service offered by the school is full day.
What's Required
Each public agency must conduct a full and individual initial evaluation (FIIE) before providing special education and related services to a child with a disability (34 CFR 300.301(a)). Subsequently, an ARD Committee determines if the child needs special education and/or related services (34 CFR 300.8(a)(1)).For information regarding the disability conditions that the Texas Education Agency (TEA) recognizes, see Disability Terms.
Special education means specially designed instruction, at no cost to the parents, to meet the unique needs of a child with a disability. Specially designed instruction means adapting, as appropriate to the needs of an eligible child under this part, the content, methodology, or delivery of instruction— to address the unique needs of the child that result from the child’s disability; and to ensure access of the child to the general curriculum, so that the child can meet the educational standards within the jurisdiction of the public agency that apply to all children (34 CFR 300.39(a)).
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Each public agency must ensure that to the maximum extent appropriate, children with disabilities, including children in public or private institutions or other care facilities, are educated with children who are nondisabled; and special classes, separate schooling, or other removal of children with disabilities from the regular educational environment occurs only if the nature or severity of the disability is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be achieved satisfactorily (34 CFR 300.114(a)).
Each public agency must ensure that a continuum of alternative placements is available to meet the needs of children with disabilities for special education and related services. The continuum must include instruction in regular classes, special classes, special schools, home instruction, and instruction in hospitals and institutions; and make provision for supplementary services (such as resource room or itinerant instruction) to be provided in conjunction with regular class placement (34 CFR 300.115(b)).
For Infant and Toddlers with vision or auditory impairments see Individual Family Service Plan (IFSP).
HISD Board Policy
What We Do
Children Transitioning from Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) Agencies
The Office of Special Education Services has an Intake Center to evaluate children prior to the age of three years who are transitioning from Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) agencies. The following steps are followed:
Eligibility
Preschool age children may be eligible for special education and related services under the following categories
Process for Involving Nurse Consultant
As is noted on the Intake form, Nurse Consultants are to only be included on the evaluation team when the child is being considered for AI, VI, or is medically fragile. For all other children, the case manager (SLP for speech only and evaluation specialist for all others) is able to conduct observations related to the child’s vision/hearing status during performance of evaluation and assessment procedures. Additionally, parent report can assist team members in determining what vision/hearing -related behaviors are or are not typically observed with the child.
The level of hearing and vision testing required is only for identifying those children who need further diagnostic evaluation by a specialist and not for the purpose of diagnosing specific hearing and/or vision conditions.
When attending ECI transition meetings and considering who needs to be on the evaluation team, please include the nurse consultant only when the child is being considered for AI, VI, or is medically fragile.
If the speech therapist suspects that a child needs additional assessment after completing the speech/language evaluation, a team comprised of the evaluation specialist, a general education teacher, a special education teacher and the speech therapist will review the existing data.. The team must meet within 10 days of the date of the speech/language evaluation to make a determination regarding completion of additional testing. If it is determined that additional testing is needed, the testing will be completed prior to the initial ARD/IEP meeting.
Non-enrolled Children (ages 3-5)
The Office of Special Education Services evaluates children who are not enrolled in school and are suspected of having a disability. The following steps are followed:
Continuum of Services
The following continuum of special education services is available for preschool children with disabilities:
Forms
Resources